Sabah Al-Ahmad Cardiac Center held a symposium to promote awareness about the risks of hypertension, and heart disease and stroke, on Sunday on the eve of the World Heart Day.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the three-day event, Chairman of the Center Dr. Mohammad Al-Jarallah said the awareness campaign started with opening a booth at the Avenues shopping complex to distribute booklets and brochures on the prevention and treatment of heat diseases.
"The campaign includes conducting diabetes and blood pressure checks for shoppers as part of early diagnosis efforts," he said. "The Center is keen on joining the efforts of the World Health Organization (WHO) to reduce direct or indirect risks posed to heart and arteries by unhealthy habits including smoking.
"We chose 'road to healthy heart' as a theme of activities to mark the World Heart Day this year," Al-Jarallah pointed out.
Marking the occasion, WHO called on its member countries to take action on the overuse of salt in order to cut the number of people experiencing heart disease and stroke, and, in turn, save lives; it had set 30 percent as target for salt reduction by 2025.